Black military beret cocked slightly, an array of ribbons across his dress blues, the chief warrant officer pushes a wheelchair through the garden at the Long Beach V.A. Hospital.

The man in the chair chatters amiably as they pass pink, purple and yellow flowers, the sun's rays filtering through overhanging trees. The officer nods, offering a comment.

It's a moment of peace. But there is something about the men that hints at much more, a bond forged from shared horrors – and the shared knowledge that, sometimes, forgiveness is the only thing that allows us to survive.

The man in the wheelchair is Tibor Rubin, 81, Nazi concentration camp survivor, Korean War Medal of Honor recipient, former POW and – in times of peace – Garden Grove resident affectionately known as "the Jewish Santa Claus."

The man pushing the chair is Chief Warrant Officer Robert McCune, 58, survivor of racism, decorated warrior and – in times of peace and war – someone often mistaken for actor Lou Gossett Jr.

On the 60th anniversary of the Korean War, "the forgotten war," the two men, close for more than two decades, agreed to share what makes their friendship so meaningful and how they ended up at the White House in 2005.

•••

Rubin was born in a town of 800 people in Hungary in 1929. He was 13 when the Jews in his village were rounded up and hauled to Mauthausen Camp in Nazi-occupied Austria. Rubin's mother, father and sister were among the tens of thousands of people who were slaughtered.

But one prisoner taught the boy to survive.

"Stay out of sight," the man said. "Eat garbage, anything you can get. And get warm clothes off the dead."

The stench of rotting corpses filling his days and nights, Rubin endured for 14 months. By the time U.S. Army troops liberated the camp on May 5, 1945, dysentery was the biggest killer. There wasn't much left of Rubin except skin, bones – and will.

As he watched the soldiers free his people, he vowed that someday he would become "an American GI Joe."

•••

McCune was born on the outskirts of a town of 600 in Mississippi. Raised by his grandmother, he was a child when schools were integrated.

When he went to the drinking fountain, he was spit on. When he went to the restroom, he was urinated on.

Tibor Rubin and Robert McCune get a breath of fresh air in a garden area outside the VA Hospital in Long Beach. Rubinwas being treated at the hospital. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Korean War veteran and Holocaust survivor Tibor Rubin was three times recommended for the Medal of Honor by two of his commanding officers who were killed in action. He received the Medal of Honor at a White House ceremony in 2005. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tibor Rubin gets a visit from his friend Robert McCune, a veteran of the Vietnam War and currently serving in the California State Military Reserve. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Robert McCune, a Vietnam veteran who works at the VA Hospital in Long Beach, takes a stroll with Tibor Rubin on the grounds of the hospital. McCune, a member of the California State Military Reserve and a close friend of Rubin's, has been serving as a volunteer escort for Medal of Honor recipient Rubin to many military events. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tibor Rubin was born in Hungary and at age 13 was sent to the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria. His family was killed in the camp, but he was liberated by American troops. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tibor Rubin gets some help combing his hair from Carmen Ponce de Leon, a volunteer at the VA Hospital in Long Beach. Rubin, a Medal of Honor recipient and Korean War veteran, was a patient at the hospital. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
After being liberated from a German concentration camp by American troops during World War II, Rubin promised God he would become a "GI Joe." Having immigrated to the U.S in 1948, he got his chance in 1950 when he finally passed the test to enlist in the Army. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Robert McCune, who works at the VA Hospital in Long Beach, is a member of the California State Military Reserve and has been serving as a volunteer escort for Rubin, a Medal of Honor recipient for actions in the Korean War, to various military events around the country. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Korean War veteran and Medal of Honor recipient Tibor Rubin gets a salute from veteran and nurse Thomas Minter as Robert McCune escorts Rubin down a hall at the VA hospital in Long Beach. McCune, a Vietnam veteran, has formed a special relationship with Rubin, a Holocaust survivor. Both men have overcome prejudice and hatred in their lives. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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